


Mechanical Creations

by celtic7irish



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, M/M, SO MUCH FLUFF, Tattoo Artist Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2020-03-07 14:49:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18875389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celtic7irish/pseuds/celtic7irish
Summary: Tony Stark is a tattoo artist who gains inspiration from all things technical.  When Tall, Dark, and Handsome walks in wanting a cover-up tattoo, Tony is only too happy to oblige. Oh, and did he mention? He really, really likes that metal arm.





	1. The Walk-In

**Author's Note:**

  * For [yourselenite](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourselenite/gifts).



“Thank you! It’s perfect!” The girl, Stacey, twisted around, admiring her new tattoo in the mirror of Tony’s shop.  “Amanda said you were the best at this sort of thing, and she was totally right!” On her back, just a bit above the waistline of her jeans, floated a tiny gold-and-silver butterfly tattoo whose wings were made of finely detailed gears.  For such a small piece, Tony was quite proud of the details he’d managed to add to it.

 

“Thank you,” he replied graciously as he rang up Stacey’s balance.  He remembered Amanda’s tattoo, a steampunk-inspired heart. It had been rather larger than Stacey’s small one, but not as satisfying for Tony.  He’d nonetheless put all of his exceptional skill into the piece, and it had come out very well. Obviously Amanda was still happy with it, if she’d sent one of her friends Tony’s way.

 

“Please be sure to tell your friends if any of them are looking for something special,” he murmured.  After all, he didn’t spend a lot of time on advertising outside of his online website and a few paintings on his windows.   _ Stark’s Mechanical Wonders _ was arguably the best place to get tattoos that were inspired by anything mechanical, and he had a waiting list that went four months out, but it never hurt to have more clients.

 

After Stacey left, Tony let out a deep breath, then walked over to his workstation to begin sterilizing his equipment.  He didn’t have any more appointments for the day, but he’d stay open for another hour or two to see if he got any walk-ins.  It didn’t happen often, because people didn’t just  _ walk out _ with a quick, run-of-the-mill tattoo when they came to Tony.  It was part of his appeal, that he only did unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that were never duplicated.

 

“Jarvis, give me some tunes,” Tony said.  “You know what I like.” Jarvis was his best creation yet, an AI that could think for itself and react accordingly.  Dum-E and U were far less sophisticated. Tony had intended them to be helper bots with his work, but they weren’t very good at it, and Tony didn’t trust either of them with his inks or needles.  So they mostly cleaned the shop - after hours - and greeted customers. They both really enjoyed greeting customers, and the people seemed to be delighted by them, too.

 

While AC/DC pumped out over the speakers - Jarvis would turn it down if somebody approached the shop - Tony cleaned and put away his tools and checked inventory.  He hated doing paperwork, and much preferred working with his hands, but needs must.

 

He was on his third cup of coffee, clicking idly through various websites looking for inspiration when the small chime above his shop door rang.  Tony looked up with his customer service smile to greet the latecomer. “Hello there! Welcome to Mechanical Creations! What can I do for you?”

 

“Uh….I’d like to get a tattoo?”  The uncertainty in the other man’s tone raised alarm bells in Tony’s head, and he took a moment to take a closer look.  What he saw made his breath catch in his throat. The man standing in the lobby of his shop was  _ gorgeous _ .  Tall, dark, and handsome, with long brown hair pulled into half a man-bun and the most gorgeous grey eyes Tony had ever seen.  The artist immediately switched tactics.

 

“Well, hello there again,” he purred.  “You don’t sound too sure about that. Never had one before?”

 

“I have one,” the man replied, sounding almost defensive, “but I wasn’t ‘xactly in my right mind when it was done.”

 

Ah. That made much more sense.  Cover ups were difficult, because the new design had to not only conceal or incorporate the old tattoo, but it had to be something that the person would be willing to live with for the rest of their life.  Any customer who’d had a poorly done tattoo once, especially if it was their only one, would be wary of approaching an unknown for a cover up.

 

“Well, how about I take a look, and we’ll see what we can do?” Tony asked, rising to his feet.  “Depending on what it is, we’ll either try and come up with a way to incorporate the current design, or we’ll see if we can figure out a way to cover it entirely.  How does that sound?” He was really hoping the guy said yes, because under the leather jacket he was wearing, Tony could see broad shoulders and a chest that would give him wet dreams for months to come.

 

The man considered that for a moment, then nodded.  “All right,” he agreed, moving further into the shop and shrugging out of his jacket, revealing the tank top underneath.  But it wasn’t the clothes that made Tony’s breath catch, or even the well-muscled arms. Instead, he was transfixed by the man’s left arm.  It was a prosthetic, but not like any prosthetic that Tony had ever seen. Shiny black metal lined with gold and made with fine, overlapping plates that shifted with quiet clicks as the other man moved his arm.  It appeared to go the whole way up to his shoulder, and even the articulated fingers were more finely made than anything that Tony had ever seen.

 

He was reaching for the arm before he realized it, and he stopped, pulling back with a sheepish grin.  “Sorry, I just....tech,” he said, knowing that it explained nothing.

 

But the man was smiling at him.  A small smile, sure, just the corner of his lips upturned, but still.  “Yeah,” he agreed. “That’s kinda why I came here. I figured you’d appreciate it more’n some others.”

 

“Oh, yes, of course,” Tony said, having completely forgotten that the guy was here as a client, and not for Tony’s personal enjoyment, more the pity.  “My name’s Tony, by the way,” he added, holding out his hand for Hot Guy to shake.

 

“James Barnes,” the other man introduced himself, gripping Tony’s hand firmly and giving it a quick shake.  “But mos’ people jus’ call me Bucky.”

 

“Bucky?” Tony asked, amused.  “You come up with that all by yourself?”

 

Bucky shrugged.  “My best friend,” he admitted ruefully.  “He’s a punk.” 

 

Tony laughed, then gestured Bucky over to his workstation.  “Well, then, Bucky, how about you come here and show me this tattoo of  yours? We’ll see if we can’t come up with something that you’re gonna love.”

 

“Promise?” Bucky asked.

 

Tony grinned.

 

“Promise.”


	2. The First Session

It took nearly a month before Tony and Bucky had a design that worked for both of them.  The black twelve-pointed star was filled with dozens of tiny gold circuits reminiscent of a motherboard, one six-pointed star on top of another.  The gold circuit lines started in the center of the star and flowed outwards toward the points. In the center of each point was a gear in bright red, reminiscent of the original red star tattoo.  Apparently Bucky had gotten the tattoo when he’d been forced into a gang as a teenager, in exchange for keeping his best friend away from Hydra. Not that the vicious gang had wanted a scrawny thing like his best friend had been at the time, but they’d wanted Bucky, and were more than willing to use Steve as leverage if that meant having his compliance.

 

Tony hadn’t ever had the pleasure of meeting Steve, but by all accounts, he’d gone from scrawny sickly child to muscled-up beefcake in a span of about two years.  But by then, it was too late for Bucky to get out; he was one of their lieutenants. Steve had amassed a team of his own and started an all-out war with Hydra to break Bucky free of them, and all it had cost was Bucky’s arm.  The prosthetic had been made by an innovative new company that dealt in high-end replacement limbs.

 

Tony had actually worked with Wakandan Enterprises before, mostly on prototypes.  The head of the company, T’Challa, was a brilliant businessman, and his younger sister, Shuri, was a genius in her own right, head of R&D.  If Tony was completely honest with himself, he had loved working with them. But eventually, he’d gone his own way and set up a tattoo parlor, of all things.  And while he still created things in his own time, Tony otherwise poured his love for technology into every tattoo he inked into someone’s skin.

 

“Are you ready?” Tony asked the man seated in the shop chair as he checked and rechecked his inks and tools, laying everything in neat rows within easy reach.

 

Bucky took a deep breath.  “Yeah, ‘m ready,” he said, his expression equal parts excitement and trepidation.  Tony knew he was wondering whether Tony was really as good as his reputation. This tattoo wouldn’t be easy, made of hundreds of tiny, thin lines, and Tony was going to be doing the entire thing freestyle, with only the drawn art for a reference.

 

Tony smiled.  “I really am good,” he said sincerely.  “Steady hands. I promise I won’t screw this up.”  He certainly hadn’t yet, though Bucky in a tight-fitting tank top would definitely be distracting.  And the arm. Tony wanted to do wicked, wicked things to that arm, and only the fact that he was a _professional, dammit_ kept him from begging Bucky to let him take a peek at the inner workings.

 

“I know,” Bucky said, sounding more sure this time.  Grey eyes watched intently as Tony carefully cleaned the area where he’d be working.  Bucky’s tattoo was going to take more than one several-hour session, but they both felt it would be worth it in the end.

 

While Tony worked, he talked.  He explained to Bucky that he’d gotten several PhD’s in various science fields, and that he’d always been drawn to technology, but he had no interest in taking over his father’s business.  Tattooing had started out as a rebellion against his father and the demands that Howard had made, his life planned out without his input. But he’d found that he really enjoyed it, the challenge presented by the precision and creativity needed to make wondrous works of art on living canvases, and so he’d opened up his own shop twelve years ago, and had been doing this ever since.

 

In return, Bucky told him about his friend, Steve, the stubborn blonde that couldn’t stand bullies, that always seemed to be looking for a fight when they were younger.  There were others, too. Natasha, Steve’s pretty redheaded Ukranian girlfriend that was scarier than Hydra had ever been. Sam, an ex-pararescue that worked with war vets and had a dry sense of humor that was somehow both irritating and charming.  Clint, a human disaster by all counts, raised in a circus and nearly killed by his own brother.

 

Tony found himself charmed by these people that Bucky called friends.  He traded Bucky’s stories for ones of Rhodey and Bruce and Pepper, people who had known him and stuck by him through the years, while he got himself into all kinds of trouble.  Of course, not all of the trouble he’d gotten into had been his fault. Rhodey was the worst sort of enabler, even if he liked to pretend he was the responsible one. And Bruce enjoyed explosions almost as much as Tony did, as long as nobody got hurt. Property damage was fine, though.  Pepper was the only one that Tony would consider a good role model, but her unrepentant competency and fierceness had made her very much sought after, and she was now CEO of Wakandan Enterprises.

 

By the time Tony was finished with the first session, scooting backwards and stretching, wincing as his back protested being bent over for the past several hours, Bucky was relaxed, grey eyes watching him half-lidded from where he was settled comfortably in the chair.  “You’re as good as your reputation,” Bucky commented idly, and Tony preened.

 

“Yeah, well, I wouldn’t still in business if I wasn’t,” he pointed out practically.  Bucky huffed a laugh, and Tony grinned. “Do you want to go ahead and schedule your next session?” he asked.

 

Bucky nodded.  “Yeah, that’ll be good,” he said.  “And maybe you’ll let me take you out for coffee sometime?” he added slyly.

 

Tony smiled.  “When your tattoo is done,” he countered.  “Because if it’s a bad coffee date, I might just sabotage it later.”  It was an empty threat, of course, and Bucky rolled his eyes.

 

“Fine,” he huffed.  “How long do I gotta wait for the next one?”

 

“Six weeks would probably be best,” Tony admitted, eyeing the area around the tattoo.  It was red, but not any worse than usual for a five-hour session of constant work. “It’ll probably take four or five sessions altogether,” he said.  Bucky pouted, but Tony had been through this before. “If it gets infected, it’ll take longer. Your skin needs time to heal between sessions." Bucky gave him a suspicious look, and Tony laughed.  “Trust me,” he said.

 

“If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here,” Bucky said, standing up and reaching for his jacket.  Tony was almost disappointed when the metal arm was covered up. Bucky caught him looking and raised one eyebrow.  “You really do like tech, huh?” he asked.

 

“What? The shop name wasn’t enough?” Tony snarked back.

 

Bucky grinned, stepping closer to Tony so that the artist had to look up to meet his eyes.  “How ‘bout you let me treat you to coffee tomorrow, and I’ll let you take a closer look at my arm?” he cajoled.

 

Tony narrowed his eyes.  “You drive a hard bargain,” he accused Bucky, who just smirked.

 

“I know.  So coffee?  Tomorrow night, around six?”

 

Tony sighed.  It was probably a bad idea to date a customer, but he really, really wanted to get his hands on that arm.  And coffee.

 

“Make it seven and you’ve got a deal,” he countered.

 

Bucky grinned.  “Then I’ll see you at seven.”

 

Tony didn’t even try to hide the way he stared at Bucky’s ass when he left.


	3. The Coffee Date

Bucky picked Tony up from the shop promptly at seven.  Tony had finished with his last client - a gold serpent made entirely of gears and wires that wrapped around the girl’s wrist up to her elbow - an hour earlier and was mostly just tidying up and trying not to get nervous about going out for coffee with Bucky.  It wasn’t like he’d never gone a date before, but he found that he wanted to make a good impression. He didn’t want Bucky to think he was only interested in the prosthetic; he was definitely interested in the man.

 

When Bucky handed Tony a helmet, Tony’s eyes lit up.  “Oh, hell yes,” he cheered, getting a laugh out of Bucky as he led the way out to the motorcycle parked out front.  Bucky slid onto it, straddling the bike, and Tony took a moment to appreciate the sleek lines of the bike and the way that Bucky looked leaning over it, grinning at him.  

 

“You comin’?” Bucky drawled.

 

“Hopefully more than once,” Tony replied thoughtlessly.  Bucky gave a rusty chuckle. “Sorry,” Tony said sheepishly, putting on the helmet and climbing onto the bike behind Bucky, pressing in close.

 

“No need to apologize, dollface,” Bucky told him, laughter in his voice.  “Hold tight.”

 

Tony tightened his grip as Bucky revved the bike and tore off down the street, weaving easily into New York traffic, Tony pressed snugly against that broad back, his hands looped around Bucky’s waist.  He might have also snuck a gratuitous grope or three, but other than a subtle shudder, Bucky didn’t lose focus, and they pulled up smoothly in front of Tony’s favorite coffee shop.

 

Bucky led the way, then held the door open for Tony to walk through first.  The smell of coffee and baked treats filled the air, and Tony breathed in appreciatively.  “Mmhmm,” he murmured, and Bucky grinned, then turned to the girl behind the counter.

 

“Just my usual, Nat,” he said.  

 

Tony blinked.  “This is Natasha?” he demanded.  “Your friend Natasha? Girlfriend of Steve Rogers?”  Her tag read Natalia, and that’s what Tony had always called her.

 

“You want  your usual, too, Stark?” Natalia - Nat - asked archly.

 

Tony gave her his most charming smile.  “Yes, please,” he purred, batting his eyelashes exaggeratedly.

 

The redhead rolled her eyes.  “Barton! One Stark Special and a Salted Caramel Fudge Latte!”

 

“Got it!” a male voice answered from the kitchen, and a moment later, a muscled blonde stepped out from the kitchen, giving Tony a frank appraisal before turning to Bucky and giving him two thumbs up.  Bucky just gave a deep sigh, covering his eyes with one hand while Tony laughed up at him.

 

“I though Meet the Family didn’t happen until at least the third date,” he teased Bucky.

 

Grey eyes glared at the grinning baristas before Bucky shrugged.  “Yeah, well, Nat kinda insisted, and I don’t tell her no if I want to keep all my bits.” 

 

“Oh, well, we wouldn’t want that,” Tony agreed.  “I have plans for later.” Clint gave a wolf whistle, and Natalia smacked him upside the head.

 

“Coffee.  Now,” she repeated, and Clint smiled at her, brushing a quick kiss to Nat’s cheek before wandering over to the machines to start preparing their coffee orders while Natasha pulled a couple of her special Cinnamon Crumble muffins.  They were filled with cream cheese centers, and were the tastiest thing Tony had ever had the pleasure of eating. 

 

“Natalie, you are a goddess among women,” Tony praised, earning a raised eyebrow from the redhead.

 

“I know,” she said, ringing them up.  Tony let Bucky pay, and then the two men made their way over towards a corner table and settled in to wait for their orders.  

 

“So,” Bucky started, “you come here a lot?”

 

Tony shrugged.  “Enough that I have my own drink,” he replied.

 

Bucky grinned.  “I noticed. What’s a Stark Special?”

 

Tony laughed.  “Honestly? It’s whatever flavors they feel like putting into it, and twelve shots of espresso.”

 

Bucky’s eyes widened, and he looked over to where Clint was adding shots to Tony’s drinks.  “I definitely didn’t pay enough for twelve shots of espresso,” he said, and Tony chuckled.

 

“I have an account here,” he said easily.  “They let you pay for a basic coffee, and they’ll charge the extra to my account.”  He didn’t like to brag, but he was fairly well off between his inheritance and the royalties from patents he’d submitted while working with Wakanda Enterprises.  The money he made from tattoos was reinvested back into the shop, or used to sustain his other hobbies, such as restoring old cars. Or satisfying his caffeine addiction.

 

Natalia brought over their coffee and muffins, giving Tony a pointed look before sauntering away, back behind the counter to ring up a group of teenagers that had just come in.  Tony frowned at her retreating back, then picked up his coffee cup, removing the lid. Floating on top of his coffee was a foam heart. With an arrow stabbed right through it. Tony snorted, lifting the cup to his mouth and taking a sip.  Hot and delicious, like usual.

 

“Not very subtle, are they?” he asked idly.

 

Bucky snorted.  “No, not really.”  He shifted in his seat, eyeing the teenagers who had made their way over to the comfortable chairs scattered on the other side of the coffee shop.  Seeming to make up his mind, Bucky shrugged out of his jacket, exposing the solid black tee he was wearing underneath. Holding his own cup of coffee in one hand, Bucky held out his left arm, palm up.

 

Tony’s eyes were drawn to the sleek curves of the plates, and before he had a chance to think about it, his hand was on it, exploring carefully, the metal cool to his touch, despite the fact that it had been covered by Bucky’s jacket only moments before.  Bucky’s fingers curled inwards when Tony’s finger skimmed across his palm, and Tony looked up at the other man. “Can you feel that?” he asked curiously.

 

Bucky shrugged, looking suddenly uncomfortable.  “A little,” he admitted. “I can feel pressure, and sometimes hot and cold, but not much more than that.”  Tony’s mind was already spinning with possibilities, and he resolved to send some of his ideas to Shuri. She’d probably get a kick out of the challenge.

 

Bucky’s hand tightened around Tony’s, careful not to squeeze too hard, and Tony lifted their joined hands, turning his grip over and pressing a gentle kiss to the back of Bucky’s prosthetic.  “Your tatoo is going to be so amazing when I’m done,” he murmured.

 

Bucky’s laughter filled the warmth of the coffee shop.


	4. The Last Session

It was Bucky’s last session, and a crowd was gathered in Tony’s shop, sitting around and chatting with each other.  Nat and Clint had the day off, and had apparently decided that they had nothing better to do than attend Bucky’s final tattoo session.  Natasha had dragged Steve along, and Bucky had  _ not _ been kidding when he’d spoken of the blonde.  Steve was tall and broad, and Tony had a really hard time imaging him as a short, scrawny child.  Sam was there as well. Tony had taken an instant liking to the even-headed ex-pararescue. The way that he teased Bucky and Steve, needling them without offense, sort of made Tony wish that he wasn’t an only child.

 

“You do beautiful work,” Natalia said from behind Tony.  Tony’s hands held steady as he finished off the end of a circuit, and Bucky glared at his friend over Tony’s head.

 

“Thanks,” Tony said once the needle was safely away from Bucky’s skin.  “Could you please not go all silent ninja on me when I’m working on Handsome here?” he asked.  “I have yet to screw up a tattoo, and this one  _ will not _ be my first.”

 

“It’s a very beautiful design,” Steve said, from where he was sitting, doodling on a sketchpad. “Clean lines, intricate detail.”  Tony had to admit that he was curious about what the other man was drawing, but it really wasn’t any of his business.

 

Bucky grinned, smug.  “I told ya I picked the bes’ one,” he informed his friend, who just rolled his eyes.

 

“Yeah, sure, Buck,” he replied.  “Whatever you say.”

 

Tony grinned.  “I like your friends,” he told Bucky, who chuckled.

 

“Yeah?” he asked.  “That’s good.”

 

“Oh?” Tony asked, starting on the next circuit.  “And why’s that?”

 

“‘Cause I plan on you bein’ around a long, long time,” Bucky purred.  Then he paused. “And I still gotta meet your friends,” he added.

 

Tony grinned.  “Oh, that’ll be fun!” he said, wondering what Rhodey would make of the other man.  Bruce would probably be just as fascinated as Tony was by Bucky’s arm. Pepper would be the real test.  Rhodey might play the overprotective big brother, but if Pepper didn’t like Bucky, she could ruin him and not think twice.  

 

Bucky smiled.  “Yeah?” he said.  “Then, how ‘bout you finish this up and we’ll go get pizza or somethin’?”

 

“Pizza!” Clint cheered, followed almost immediately by a chorus of “No, Clint!”

 

Tony laughed.  “Pizza. Yeah, sure, why not? Sounds good.”

 

The wolf whistles when Bucky leaned down and kissed him weren’t entirely unexpected.


	5. Six Months Later

Tony kicked the door shut behind him, bags of Chinese takeout in his hands.  “Honey, I’m home!” he called out.

 

Bucky appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, bare chested and barefooted.  “Welcome back, darlin’,” he said, eyes sparkling. Tony smiled when Bucky moved forward and leaned down for a kiss, taking the bags from him.  Tony gripped Bucky’s arms, one metal and one flesh, returning the kiss with interest.

 

When he pulled back, he stood back to admire Bucky’s newest tattoo, a golden serpent made of gears and wires that curled up Bucky’s right side and looped around his pec, guarding his heart. It was healing nicely.

 

“Narcissist,” Bucky accused him gently.

 

Tony grinned.  “Not going to deny it, Buckaroo,” he replied cheerfully, making Bucky laugh as he followed the other man into the kitchen.  “Oh. Rhodey’s got some leave coming up, so he’s planning on stopping by for a couple days.”

 

“Yeah?” Bucky asked, putting the bags down on the table so he could pull Tony back against his chest, nuzzling the back of his neck.  Tony laughed at the tickle, squirming out of Bucky’s grip. Rhodey had been deployed for the last several months, so this would be the first time he’d get to meet Bucky, and Tony was really looking forward to it.

 

“Just let me know what night you need me,” Bucky told him.  “I’ll make sure my schedule’s clear.” Bucky apparently worked for some super secret government organization that Tony had never heard of, but the benefits were amazing, to hear him tell it.

 

Tony smiled.  “We really should talk about moving in together,” he said as he gathered silverware while Bucky got out a couple of plates and bowls before sitting at the table and starting to dish up the food.

 

“Let me meet your friends first,” Bucky told him; the same thing he’d told him from the start.  Bucky seemed worried that he wouldn’t pass muster when he met Tony’s friends, a hesitation that Tony didn’t share in the least.  Pepper was going to _love_ him.  Speaking of which....

 

“All right.  I’ll set up a play date,” he promised.  “You can meet them all at once. We’ll invite Steve and the others, too.  It’ll be a blast.” Tony had never been very good at being patient.

 

Bucky smiled.  “Does this Rhodey have one of your tattoos?” he asked, dipping a piece of breaded chicken into the sweet and sour sauce and taking a bite, sauce coating his fingers.

 

“Nope!” Tony said cheerfully.  “Just you.” That wasn’t true, of course; Tony had a business, lots of people had tattoos that he’d created.  But nobody that Tony really _knew_.  He’d had clients ask him out before, but he’d always turn them down.  Bucky was the exception, and he hadn’t regretted it yet.

 

Bucky considered that for a moment.  “Lucky me,” he said after a moment, lips curling up into a sweet smile.

 

Tony smiled back helplessly.

 

“Lucky you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope I did your prompt justice!
> 
> Inspiration for the original twelve-star tattoo:
> 
> [Inspiration for the original 12-point star tattoo](https://www.magicalearscollectibles.com/Disney-Wrist-Watch--Mickey-Mouse-Icon-Star--Red_p_2954.html)
> 
> [Inspiration for the gold dragon tattoo](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/327563946540138496/579447832684265503/dragon_tattoo_steampunk.png)


End file.
